Presenters see real estate rebound
The worst has passed, but the future remains somewhat uncertain for Maine's real estate industry.
That was the consensus of presenters at the Maine Real Estate and Development Association's annual forecasting conference yesterday in Portland. Industry insiders forecast slow turnarounds within the retail, office, hospitality, industrial and residential markets, providing opportunities for some landlords to offer subsidies or rent concessions to retain tenants.
Among the highlights: greater Portland's retail market hit a decade-high vacancy rate at 11% and its industrial sector finished 2009 at a 10% vacancy rate, slightly higher than the office space sector, which finished the year at 9.15%; Maine's hospitality sector weathered dips in occupancy (-7.6%), average daily rates (-3.5%) and revenue per room (-10.9%) over 2008 figures; the average sale price for a home in Maine in December of 2009 ticked up by a mere 1% over the same period in 2008, but was heralded as an indication that the residential market has stabilized and will benefit from sustained low interest mortgage rates.
A summary of select presentations at the MEREDA conference will appear in the Feb. 8 issue of Mainebiz.
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